


(I Don't Wanna Be) Alone in The Silence

by a_salty_alto



Series: If You Find It's Me You're Missing [1]
Category: Avengers Assemble (Cartoon)
Genre: Angst, Episode Related, Episode: s04e01 Avengers No More Part 1, Howard Stark's A+ Parenting, Hurt No Comfort, Implied/Referenced Character Death, M/M, Mind Control, Panic Attacks, Season/Series 04, Suicidal Thoughts, handwavy magic/science
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-22
Updated: 2017-06-22
Packaged: 2018-11-17 04:15:24
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 960
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11267736
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/a_salty_alto/pseuds/a_salty_alto
Summary: After the communication link is cut, Tony is suddenly all only with only the silence.





	(I Don't Wanna Be) Alone in The Silence

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Takame](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Takame/gifts).



> A fill for Landizac's prompt on the Cap-Ironman dreamwidth 
> 
> Caz, I hope you enjoy it :)
> 
> Un-beta'd, any mistakes are my own, tags are probably overly cautious, but you can see the prompt in the end notes along with some more detailed explanations.

They say that you never truly know how much you need something until it’s gone.

 

Well that’s never been the case for Tony. He’s a genius after all. A part of his brain is devoted to running the numbers and possible scenarios in the event of losing anything.

 

His suit, the company, the team, Steve.

 

He’s constantly aware of how much he needs all of it, and with nothing else to do in this dimension he’s even more aware how much he needs to hear everyone.

 

He needs Steve’s constant ‘good mornings’ and Natasha’s strategy updates to tell him how much time has passed. He needs to hear Clint, and Thor, and Hulk bickering and wrecking everything to know that they’re all doing fine. He needs to hear Sam and Dr. Foster research and plan and discuss to know how long until he can come home. He needs to hear the gentle evening breeze through the Compound to know that he’s not cut-off, that even though he can’t _see_ them, they’re all there.

 

Tony’s a genius, and when he hears the communication link cut off, he has no clue how he’ll function alone in the deafening silence.

* * *

 

At first, Tony speaks aloud, babbling, reciting movies line for line until his voice is hoarse and he can’t speak anymore.

 

Then, Tony imagines other people are there with him.

 

 

He imagines Clint’s joking, discussing science with Sam, Thor telling stories, Hulk teasing him and early mornings with Natasha when neither of them could sleep and just sat on the couch in each other’s laps watching movies.

 

He imagines Steve’s there with his vibrant smile and clear blue eyes, and he’ll rub Tony’s back and comfort him.

 

“Don’t worry Tony, we’ll find a way to bring you back!”

“We won’t rest until we get you home!”

“We’ll all be together soon!”

 

Sometimes he imagines his mom is there, and they play together on the piano, or that he’s baking cookies with Jarvis, or playing Captain America and the Howling Commandos with Aunt Peggy.

Sometimes he’s showing Yinsen around the Tower and everything he’s built since the cave.

* * *

 

Sometimes Obie or the Red Skull is there to taunt him.

 

Sometimes Arsenal begs to know why Tony left him behind.

 

Sometimes it’s just the accusations of everyone he hadn’t been able to save as Iron Man.

 

Sometimes Howard shows up.

 

He just does what he always did and ignores Tony, no matter how much he asks, _begs_ for his attention, “don’t you care I’m going crazy?”

 

* * *

 

Eventually, Steve smiles down at him, kisses his knuckles, and says:

 

“C’mon Tony, you really think we’re still looking for you? We’re probably all dead at this point!”

 

* * *

 

 

The blackness is creeping ever closer.

 

Tony’s so lonely sometimes he wishes it would hurry up and swallow him already.

 

* * *

 

 

The first sound Tony hears in (he has no clue, he’s not even sure time _existed_ anymore. It felt like something he’d dreamt up) is the soft hum of the arc reactor rebooting.

 

Strange’s ‘No Tech’ spell must have fallen apart along with the rest of this world.

  


Tony laughs as he feels Ultron reach into his mind. His relief is barely touched by the wave of shame that follows.

 

“My, Stark, I didn’t think you’d be so happy to see me.”

 _Got cut off from the others. I haven’t heard another voice in ages._ Tony would have flashed one of his trademark shit-eating grins if he could move his face. _Now it’s just you and me until this world ends, buddy._

 

“What!”

 

_Yeah, see, Strange’s little dimension is falling apart at the seams, it’s why you’re up and running again. So we’re stuck here until it erases itself, and us, from existence._

 

Ultron pauses, while Tony just revels in the fact that there was another presence there with him, even if it was a sadistic AI that had tried to kill him _._ The blackness was almost upon them, anyhow, it wouldn’t be too long.

 

“How do we leave” Ultron asks, finally.

 

_Why would I know?_

 

“You are my creator, don’t insult your own intellect. You’ve been here longer, with nothing to do but observe this world. If it is truly falling apart, you would know the best way to slip through the cracks.”

 

_Maybe I do. Why would I tell you?_

 

Tony is wholly unprepared for what happens next.

 

He feels the weight from Ultron leave his mind, and all of a sudden he’s back in that same damned silence from before.

 

Except now that he’s just had a small taste of finally interacting with someone else, after so damn long by himself with only the voices in his head, the silence feels like a physical weight crushing him. Tony can’t breathe. The world starts to spin around him. Spots start to cloud his vision and-

 

“Now, now,  none of that.” Ultron returns almost as quickly as he left and forces Tony’s lungs to take deep breaths.

 

“See, Stark, I can just leave you here, alone, or, you can show us the way out” Ultron purrs, and Tony knows what he should do. What the others would do.

 

But the truth of the matter is that he can’t remember what anyone’s voice sounds like anymore. He can barely remember their faces. He can’t remember Steve’s comforting smile as he insisted over and over again that Tony was strong.

 

“So, what’ll it be?”

 

Ultron’s right, Tony does know the way out through the cracks, and well, Tony was always good at disappointing Steve, not that he can remember what that disappointment sounds like. But he wants to, he so desperately wants to that he leads Ultron out of the decaying realm.

 

Ultron’s laugh is the only one he can remember anymore.

**Author's Note:**

> Here is the prompt:
> 
> Imagine if like....Tony is trapped in a pocket universe where it's basically nothing but him. He's alone, it's basically all radio silence except when he's connected with the Avengers which is his only way of staying sane and a promise to return back home. Talking to the Avengers is the only thing he has left because he's basically floating in limbo with absolutely nothing to do except plan and figure out how to escape. AND THEN THE CONNECTION BREAKS OFF WITH THE REST OF THE AVENGERS and suddenly the silence is all-consuming. There's only so much you can talk to yourself before you drive yourself insane. And time moves differently in this pocket limbo than from the real world so he feels like he's been trapped for ages with no way of knowing how much time has passed. Eventually, Strange's 'no-tech' curse breaks or something and Ultron returns.
> 
>  
> 
> And this is the first time in a long while since he heard a voice other than his own. And Ultron offers him a deal to "escape this limbo"
> 
> Warnings:  
> After a while, Tony doesn't really care if he dies, but isn't actively trying to kill himself.
> 
> He also has no clue what's happened to the Avengers, so he imagines that they might be dead. They're fine though.
> 
> I also have ideas for a sequel to this, so maybe be on the look out for that :p
> 
> UPDATE:   
> Now with lovely [art](https://78.media.tumblr.com/bedc0a70ba1e8364dcafaedb7a2c98cc/tumblr_p5rf7wlqh31stzh2ho1_1280.png) by Caz! I've been staring at it non-stop, I love it so much!
> 
> Also I did finish the sequel, you can find it [here](https://archiveofourown.org/works/11309010/chapters/25307835)


End file.
